OU’S BEN ZAKKAI TO HONOR MIRIAM MERZEL OF ROCHESTER AT ITS 14th ANNUAL HONOR SOCIETY SCHOLARSHIP RECEPTION,
SUNDAY, JANUARY 10
The Ben Zakkai Honor Society (BZHS) of NCSY, the international youth program of the Orthodox Union, will induct Miriam Merzel of Rochester as a new member at the 14th Annual Ben Zakkai Honor Society Scholarship Reception, Sunday, January 10 at the Lincoln Square Synagogue in New York. The evening will also pay tribute to the legendary legacy of Moses I. Feurstein, z”l, honor three individuals and induct four other new members.
BZHS is an alumni “Hall of Fame” whose new members are nominated by, and voted on, by its current members based on the nominees’ service to NCSY and the Jewish community. The Society’s main function is to raise funds for scholarships for high school NCSYers for summer programs in North America and Israel. The Society has helped pay tribute for more than forty years to esteemed NCSY alumni and community leaders who have demonstrated their dedication to Torah and their service to the Jewish people. Isabel Novak of Los Angeles serves as Chair of the BZHS.
Dinner proceeds go towards direct scholarships for NCSY members to continue their Jewish education after high school, or to participate in national NCSY programs, such as Camp Sports for Boys, National Yarchei Kallah, and Summer Experience for Girls.
Miriam Merzel blazed an exceptional career in NCSY– as a member of NCSY in Rochester; as a participant in Michlelet (an NCSY summer learning program for girls); as a regional advisor while at Stern College; and for the past year as Associate Regional Director of the Har Sinai Region in upstate New York, the most “public school” region; and with a stunning decades-long record of sustained excellence.
Three years ago Miriam revived the Echad Mikra program, emailing daily Parsha quizzes to NCSYers, with those answering correctly being eligible for scholarships to upcoming events. She learns with NCSYers on the phone and plans every aspect of Shabbatonim. She also served as an advisor on Summer Experience for Girls (SEG) program and she does this while enrolled in a challenging Ph.D. program at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York in biomedical sciences.